Michigan head men’s basketball coach Juwan Howard will reportedly be a strong candidate for one of the biggest jobs in the NBA.

Shams Charania of The Athletic is reporting that Howard is “expected to emerge” as a candidate for the job with the Los Angeles Lakers. The franchise is looking to replace previous head coach Frank Vogel.

Howard has been the head coach at Michigan for the past three seasons. He’s guided the Wolverines to a B1G regular season title (2020-21) and back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearances. Michigan has reached the Sweet 16 in consecutive seasons, as well.

Michigan has compiled a 61-32 record during Howard’s three seasons with the program. It’s his first ever head coaching gig.

Howard reportedly interviewed for the job with the Lakers in 2019.

Before his return to Ann Arbor, Howard spent six seasons working on the Miami Heat bench as an assistant coach to Erik Spoelstra (2013-19). He was also on the team (and on staff) when LeBron James was in South Beach.

Now that James is playing for the Lakers, there is a connection that exists between the two. But Howard has spoken of his commitment to Michigan when his name has surfaced for previous jobs.

Does that fact that it’s worth one of the most storied franchises in sports change the game for Howard?